Kids can ice skate, bounce in a bouncy castle and be the claw in a giant claw machine at the Christmas Village at Aperia Mall in Singapore.
UPDATED - 22 Dec 2019 (Original post: 15 Dec 2019)
December’s always a busy month what with holidays, and Christmas shopping and preparations. But it’s busy mostly because there is so many fun events and activities held by attractions and shopping malls to take the kids to!
Usually to participate in mall activities or redeem gift wraps, malls require you to spend certain amounts and that can start from anything like $40 in a single receipt. So, when we saw that the Christmas Village activities at Aperia Mall only required a minimum $20 spending and you can combine a maximum of two receipts, I had to read and re-read the T&Cs just to be sure.
Well, it’s all real and two minimum $20 receipts gave our two kids access to these three fun activities at Aperia Mall’s Christmas Village (The mall has since sweetened the deal by giving two tickets for receipts of $40-100, and four tickets for receipts above $100).
1) Ice skating
It’s not real ice here but it looks and functions like the real thing. Big E, nine, and Little E, seven, had taken very basic inline skating lessons before but I was still concerned if they could take care of themselves in the rink. Turned out they could. I think being synthetic ice, it was probably less slippery than real ice, such that they could wobble around just fine.
Skates, gloves and elbow and knee guards are provided by the way, which I thought was pretty impressive. Some places would require you to pay to rent skates and/or parkas. Skating aids, in the form of a polar bear, was also available for free.
I had told my girls to use the aids initially but turned out they were able to balance and move around freely without the aid. The staff sometimes came in to guide the kids and provide pointers, which was a really nice touch as well.
Just bring socks for this activity, and preferably longer ones. Little E’s calf had slight abrasions from the skates as they had worn anklets.
The rink can take a maximum of eight persons and one can go for 20 minutes in the rink.
2) Bouncy castle
Which kid doesn't like a bouncy castle? This inflatable comes with a slide and ball pit. This activity takes a maximum of ten, and each person gets 10-15 minutes on it depending on the crowd. There was also a staff at the top of the slide to guide little ones before they slide down!
Socks are not required for this - we saw a quite a number bare-footed in there.
3) Giant claw machine
Our kids loved this the most – being the claw in a giant claw machine! Basically you lie prone in a hammock-like device and the staff will ask which gift box you want, then staff will manoeuvre you to the present and you grab it before you’re manoeuvred back to the starting point.
I told my kids to pick the presents the furthest away so they can enjoy being ‘transported’ around for a longer time. Ha! They had so much fun with this they wanted to go again, but I'm afraid one ticket only gives you one turn. Boo hoo.
In the boxes are surprise gifts, and our girls got the same – Christmas party gift sets that came with a mask, maracas and party blower. On our second visit, they went home with Lotte Pepero stick biscuits. There are bigger prizes up for grabs like wireless earphones and headphones, if you're lucky enough to pick the right boxes.
The activities entertained us for about an hour, and it wasn’t crowded at all for the Saturday morning we were there. And you know how crowded such free activities can get during the weekends at popular malls.
Aperia Mall may not be the biggest mall around but there are still shops and restaurants there that are really easy to make that minimum $20 spending. For one, it has Tim Ho Wan, Cold Storage, Shine Korea and McDonalds.
So if you have groceries to buy or just want a dim sum lunch, come by Aperia Mall’s Christmas Village with the kids for some free and not-too-crowded fun! But it’s only till 25 December!
Bonus tips for your trip:
- Redeem your ticket to Aperia Mall’s Christmas Village with your receipts of minimum $20 spending (maximum of two same-day combined receipts) at the redemption booth at the Christmas Village on ground level. You can get two tickets with receipts of $40-100, and four tickets for receipts above $100. You don’t have to use the ticket on the same day you redeem, but the Christmas Village is only there till 25 December.
- Bring socks, preferably longer ones that cover your kid’s calves, for the ice skating activity.
- Aperia mall has free parking for three hours during the weekends and public holidays, and 630pm-1030pm on weekdays.
Find the Christmas Village at Aperia Mall at 8 -12 Kallang Avenue, Singapore 339509. It's open from 11am-8pm till 25 December.
Disclaimer: We paid for our purchases, and my opinions and reviews here are strictly my and my family’s own.
©Vivian Teo. All content and photos are copyrighted to Vivian Teo unless otherwise specified.
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